64 AUSTRALIA AND THE AUSTRALIANS. 



a full-grown cat, put its head out of the pouch and 

 began nibbling the grass too. To those who have 

 never seen such a thing before, it is not only most 

 interesting as a novel development of animal life, but 

 highly amusing. 



When hotly pursued by the dogs the mother will 

 sometimes throw the young one from the pouch, by 

 which the dogs are checked, and she makes her escape. 



One cannot help feeling, if he loses sight for a mo- 

 ment of the existence of a great all- wise Creator, who 

 does many things we cannot understand, that in the 

 production of the kangaroo, some way nature has made 

 a mistake. 



In looking at them moving along, with their hop, 

 skip and jump locomotion, there is excited for them 

 the deepest sympathy, for your first impression is 

 that they are naturally deformed, and in giving them 

 chase you are simply try ing, to destroy a cripple which 

 cannot give any hunter a very exalted opinion of him- 

 self. 



However, this is judgment formed on first appear- 

 ance only. Give him chase, as a general rule he will 

 take as good care of himself as any other game. I 

 am told these animals have been known to jump, when 

 closely pursued, thirty feet of a clear jump. 



When they are overtaken, and find themselves un- 



